Experiments in Food Porn.

I used to cook. A lot. I would spend time experimenting with recipes, cooking for friends or just myself, winging it and trying stuff out that just sounded good. But not so much anymore. It's pretty standard toddler fare over here these days. Most items are cooked in the microwave, and nothing really requires a recipe per se.

So on the rare occasion when I actually get to cook for myself, I just get freakishly giddy. At about 5:45 today I realized, "Holy crap! I'm home alone tonight, and I can eat whatever I want!!" So I went to Whole Foods without a list and just decided to see what sounded good and ended up in my little basket.

I left with a lovely wild caught yellowfin tuna steak, some fresh asparagus, a red onion, grape tomatoes, a ginger/scallion marinade for the fish, shitake risotto, lemon goat cheese, a bottle of really nice Savignon Blanc and a slice of key lime pie.

When I got home, I rubbed both sides of the tuna steak with some course sea salt and multi-colored peppercorns, then put the marinade on it and stuck it in the fridge for an hour.

I prepped the rest of the stuff, and when it was time, started steaming the asparagus in my asparagus steamer (yes, I have a piece of cookware specifically for asparagus. So what?!), and preparing the risotto. I also started to make a "garnish" for the asparagus: grape tomatoes (halved), diced red onion, capers, chunked goat cheese, a bit of dijon mustard, white wine vinegar, olive oil, and lemon juice, salt and pepper. I mixed all this up and let it set in the fridge.

When it came time to cook the fish, I seared it on each side for about 2 minutes. I plated it with the risotto, asparagus and garnish and,

Voila!!

I'm not Jaye, but I tried.

The marinade was excellent: Made by "Wild Thymes," it's called Korean Ginger and Shallot. VERY flavorful. I should have gone a bit easier on the salt and pepper rub, and left the fish on the skillet for about 30 more seconds, each side. It was an exquisite cut of fish though, so I'm not complaining. (And hell, it should've been exquisite for freakin' $21.99/lb.)But all in all, it was very good. The random "garnish" I made for the asparagus added a perfect tangy, strong punch to their rather mellow spring flavor. And the lemon goat cheese added a lovely creamy consistency as it melted on the hot asparagus. The risotto was velvety and mild, with just enough mushroom-y flavor. And I ended up waaaaaaay too full for the key lime pie or more than a glass and a half of the wine (which was a bit too fruity for my taste).

I asked this bitch what she thought, and she seemed pleased.
(Thanks always, Texpatriate.)

Night night...